This invention relates to solar water heating systems specifically designed for swimming pools and the like, and provides a novel concept of design featuring light weight and easy removability from the surface of a pool, which tremendously reduces the problems of cost, space and aesthetics which have been serious detriments to more widespread use of solar heaters for swimming pools.
Rigid flat plate solar collectors of innumerable designs of varying degrees of sophistication to achieve varying degrees of efficiency are well known. However all such solar energy collectors to date have been used very little for domestic swimming pool heating largely due to their problems of relatively high cost, and the site cost and problems involved in finding a suitable space in which to locate them without aesthetically degrading the area.
Similarly, pool covers of varying degrees of ability to reduce heat loss, to keep the pool relatively clean, and to provide some protection against small children falling into the pool are well known.
In the present invention the functions of a flat plate solar collector and an insulating pool cover are combined in a novel, flexible, light weight, essentially all plastic construction.